How Oklahoma’s $2.5bn Theme Park Dream Fell Apart

When developers unveiled plans for the American Heartland theme park in Vinita, Oklahoma, in July 2023, the vision was nothing short of spectacular. 

A $2.5 billion attraction boasting roller coasters, six themed lands, a water park, hotel, and America’s largest RV campground, it was heralded as a Midwestern answer to Disney.

A year later, the fanfare has evaporated. According to a lawsuit filed in July 2025, nothing stands on the 1,000-acre site beyond a fence and a gravel road.

At the centre of the failed venture is 91-year-old investor Gene Bicknell, once the owner of hundreds of Pizza Hut franchises. 

Bicknell claims he was manipulated into bankrolling the project by developers Richard M. Silanskas Jr., Larry K. Wilhite and Stephen D. Hedrick of Mansion Entertainment Group. 

The lawsuit alleges they stole $60 million and subjected him to psychological abuse that contributed to a stroke.

“Silanskas and Wilhite executed a predatory conspiracy of psychological manipulation — convincing Gene, through fraud and impersonation, that God himself was commanding him both to finance the park’s construction and to grant Silanskas and Wilhite two-thirds ownership over the completed venture,” the suit states.

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The announcement of American Heartland had drawn widespread attention. Mansion Entertainment claimed its design team included former Disney Imagineers and promised that the 125-acre park would rival Magic Kingdom in Florida. 

Local leaders were persuaded, and Vinita’s mayor, Josh Lee, said at the time that funding had been secured and land had been annexed to accommodate the development.

The first phase — a 320-acre RV park — was slated to open in spring 2025, with the theme park following in 2026. Developers even held a groundbreaking ceremony. 

But according to the lawsuit, “The groundbreaking was essentially the beginning and the end of the construction work on the entire project.”

Bicknell’s complaint also highlights Silanskas’ history of involvement in failed theme park projects. “The plan was to use Gene’s money to build the American Heartland Project and then steal it, paying themselves handsomely along the way,” it alleges.

The fallout has rippled beyond investors. Landowners in Vinita, who bought property on the expectation of surging values, are left with inflated prices tied to a theme park that never materialised. 

“Innocent people lost money by buying up land near Vinita with property values inflated by news of a theme park that would never exist,” the suit reads.

Once billed as a game-changer for tourism, the Oklahoma theme park has instead become a cautionary tale of big promises, weak foundations, and a dream that collapsed before it began.

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